Echinacea plant named ‘Vintage Wine’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of Echinacea plant named ‘Vintage Wine’, characterized by its upright plant habit; freely flowering habit and red-purple-colored ray florets and dark red-tipped disc florets.

BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION/CULTIVAR DESIGNATION

Echinacea purpurea cultivar Vintage Wine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar ofEchinacea plant, botanically known as Echinacea purpurea, andhereinafter referred to by the name ‘Vintage Wine’.

The new Echinacea was discovered as a chance seedling of twounidentified selections of Echinacea purpurea, not patented. The newEchinacea was discovered and selected by the Inventor in 1997 as asingle flowering plant in a controlled environment in Hummelo, TheNetherlands.

Asexual reproduction of the new Echinacea by divisions was firstconducted in Hummelo, The Netherlands in 1997. Since then, asexualreproduction by divisions has shown that the unique features of this newEchinacea are stable and reproduced true to type in successivegenerations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The cultivar Vintage Wine has not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat withvariations in environment such as temperature and light intensitywithout, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined tobe the unique characteristics of ‘Vintage Wine’. These characteristicsin combination distinguish ‘Vintage Wine’ as a new and distinctEchinacea:

1. Upright plant habit.

2. Freely flowering habit.

3. Red purple-colored ray florets and dark red-tipped disc florets.

Plants of the new Echinacea differ primarily from plants of the parentselections in ray and disc floret coloration.

Plants of the new Echinacea can be compared to plants of the Echinaceacultivar Magnus, not patented. However, plants of the new Echinacea havemore upright ray florets than plants of the cultivar Magnus. Inaddition, plants of the new Echinacea and the cultivar Magnus differ inray floret coloration.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPH

The accompanying colored photograph illustrates the overall appearanceof the new Echinacea showing the colors as true as it is reasonablypossible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in thephotograph may differ from the color values cited in the detailedbotanical description which accurately describe the colors of the newEchinacea. The photograph comprises a side perspective view of a typicalflowering plant of ‘Vintage Wine’ grown in an outdoor nursery.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The aforementioned photograph and following observations andmeasurements describe plants grown in Lisserbroek, The Netherlands, inan outdoor nursery under full sun conditions. In August, when plantswere about two years old, the photograph and the observations andmeasurements were taken. Color references are made to The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart, 2001 edition, except where generalterms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.

Botanical classification: Echinacea purpurea cultivar Vintage Wine.

Parentage:

Female, or seed, parent.—Unidentified selection of Echinacea purpurea,not patented.

Male parent, parent.—Unidentified selection of Echinacea purpurea, notpatented.

Propagation:

Type.—By divisions.

Time to produce a rooted plant.—About two months.

Root description.—Fine fibrous and well-branched.

Plant description:

Appearance.—Perennial herbaceous container and garden plant. Uprightplant habit; narrow inverted triangle. Basal branches with about threelateral branches each; dense and full plants. Moderately vigorous growthhabit.

Plant height.—About 80 cm.

Plant width or area of spread.—About 65 cm.

Lateral branches.—Length: About 28 cm. Diameter: About 4 mm. Internodelength: About 2 cm. Aspect: Mostly upright. Strength: Strong. Texture:Sparsely pubescent; rough. Color: 146A to 146B.

Foliage description.—Arrangement: Alternate; single. Length: About 19cm. Width: About 8 cm. Shape: Elliptic to narrowly ovate. Apex: Acute.Base: Cuneate. Margin: Irregularly serrate. Venation pattern: Pinnate.Texture, upper and lower surfaces: Pubescent; rough. Color: Youngfoliage, upper surface: 137A to 137B. Young foliage, lower surface: 137Bto 137C. Fully expanded foliage, upper surface: 139A. Fully expandedfoliage, lower surface: 137A to 137B. Venation, upper surface: 144B.Venation, lower surface: 144C to 144D. Petiole: Length: About 2.1 cm.Diameter: About 2 mm. Texture, upper and lower surfaces: Smooth. Color,upper and lower surfaces: 144A.

Inflorescence description:

Appearance.—Terminal and axillary inflorescences held mostly above andbeyond the foliage on strong peduncles. Composite inflorescence form,radially symmetrical; oblanceolate-shaped ray florets; disc floretsmassed at the center; ray and disc florets arranged acropetally on acapitulum. Inflorescences persistent. Inflorescences face mostlyupright.

Flowering response.—Plants flower continuous and freely from late Julyto late September in Lisserbroek, The Netherlands.

Postproduction longevity.—Inflorescences maintain good color andsubstance for about five days on the plant when grown in an outdoorenvironment. As a cut flower, inflorescences maintain good color andsubstance for about two weeks in an interior environment.

Quantity of inflorescences.—Freely flowering; about ten openinflorescences per plant at one time.

Fragrance.—Faint, sweet.

Inflorescence bud (at stage of showing color).—Length: About 3.5 cm.Diameter: About 3.3 cm. Shape: Narrowly ovoid. Color: 175A.

Inflorescence size.—Diameter: About 8 cm. Depth (height): About 3.5 cm.Disc diameter: About 3.5 cm.

Ray florets.—Length: About 3 cm. Width: About 8 mm. Shape: Oblanceolate.Apex: Emarginate to acute. Base: Acute. Margin: Entire. Texture: Smooth.Orientation: Initially upright then about 60° from vertical. Number ofray florets per inflorescence: About 40 in one to two whorls. Color:When opening, upper surface: 61C to 63A. When opening, lower surface:63A. Fully opened, upper surface: 61C to 61A. Fully opened, lowersurface: 60A.

Disc florets.—Shape: Tubular, elongated. Apex: Five-pointed; acute.Length: About 1.1 cm. Width: About 1 mm. Number of disc florets perinflorescence: More than 200. Color, immature and mature: 143B; towardsthe base, close to 155D; towards the apex, N25C; apex, 46A.

Phyllaries.—Length: About 7 mm. Diameter: About 3 mm. Shape: Lanceolate.Apex: Narrowly acute. Base: Fused. Margin: Entire. Texture: Denselypubescent. Number per inflorescence: About 40 in about six whorls.Color, upper surface: 137A. Color, lower surface: 143A.

Peduncles.—Length: About 18 cm. Diameter: About 4 mm. Angle: Mostlyerect. Strength: Strong. Texture: Sparsely pubescent; rough. Color:144A.

Reproductive organs.—Androecium: Present on disc florets only. Stamennumber: Five per floret; basifixed. Anther shape: Narrowly oblong.Anther length: About 1 mm. Anther color: Close to N199A. Pollen amount:Moderate. Pollen color: 17B to 17C. Gynoecium: Present on both ray anddisc florets. Pistil number: One per floret. Pistil length: About 7 mm.Stigma shape: Two-parted. Stigma color: 187A. Style length: About 6 mm.Style color: N144B. Ovary color: 150D to 157A.

Fruit.—Type: Flattened achene. Quantity per inflorescence: One. Length:About 5 mm. Diameter: About 1 mm. Color: N199A to N200A.

Seed.—Yield: High, almost all inflorescences produce viable seed.Quantity of seed per fruit: One. Length: About 5 mm. Diameter: About 1mm. Color: N199A to N200A.

Disease/pest resistance: Resistance to pathogens and pests common toEchinaceas has not been observed on plants grown under outdoorconditions.

Temperature tolerance: Plants of the new Echinacea have been observed totolerate temperatures from about −12 to 35° C.

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Echinacea plant named‘Vintage Wine’, as illustrated and described.